OSX 10.12 using 3GB swap when 9GB/16GB RAM is used

[tommedema]

As you can see from the attached screen shot, my Macbook Pro (2015) with OSX 10.12 is using 3GB SWAP when only 9GB RAM out of 16GB is being used.

This is causing my system to become pretty much unusable. The SWAP memory is too slow and the system becomes unresponsive.

Is this common behavior? Any particular reason on why this is happening or ideas on how I can resolve it?

 

[Rockadile]

Did you have a program using a lot of RAM before screenshot?

When was the last time you reset your laptop?

Try quitting Firefox for a fresh slate. Seems bloated judging by the RAM used.

 

[tommedema]

Did you have a program using a lot of RAM before screenshot?

When was the last time you reset your laptop?

Try quitting Firefox for a fresh slate. Seems bloated judging by the RAM used.

It's certainly not Firefox. When I use Chrome, it uses more RAM (about 5-6GB). I actually started to use Firefox after getting this issue, not before.